New rules issued for overseas investment

China has finalized rules including punishments for illegal activities, and the definition of sensitive countries and sectors on outbound direct investment, the country's top economic regulator announced on Tuesday.

The new rules, published on the website of the National Development and Reform Commission, will become effective on March 1, 2018. They remove a provision requiring companies planning outbound investment of more than $300 million to submit a "project information report" to the NDRC.

For non-sensitive overseas acquisitions or bids worth more than $300 million, the investors only need to notify the NDRC in advance, and submission of the report will no longer be necessary. They only need to report to the provincial-level development and reform authorities.